Shang Dynasty - Kings

Kings

Shang kings are conventionally referred to by posthumous names, of which the last character is one of the heavenly stems.

The earliest records are the oracle bones inscribed during the reigns of the Shang kings from Wu Ding. The oracle bones do not contain king lists, but they do record the sacrifices to previous kings and the ancestors of the current king, which follow a standard schedule. From this evidence, scholars have assembled the implied king list and genealogy, finding that it is in substantial agreement with the later accounts, especially for later kings in the dynasty.

The kings, in the order of succession derived from the oracle bones, are here grouped by generation:

Generation Older brothers of patriarch Line of descent Younger brothers
17 大乙 Dà Yǐ
16 大丁 Dà Dīng
15 大甲 Dà Jiǎ 卜丙 Bǔ Bǐng
14 大庚 Dà Gēng 小甲 Xiǎo Jiǎ
13 大戊 Dà Wù 呂己 Lǚ Jǐ
12 中丁 Zhōng Dīng 卜壬 Bǔ Rén
11 戔甲 Jiān Jiǎ 祖乙 Zǔ Yǐ
10 祖辛 Zǔ Xīn 羌甲 Qiāng Jiǎ
9 祖丁 Zǔ Dīng 南庚 Nán Gēng
8 象甲 Xiàng Jiǎ 盤庚 Pán Gēng 小辛 Xiǎo Xīn 小乙 Xiǎo Yǐ
7 武丁 Wǔ Dīng
6 祖庚 Zǔ Gēng 祖甲 Zǔ Jiǎ
5 廩辛 Lǐn Xīn 康丁 Kāng Dīng
4 武乙 Wǔ Yǐ
3 文武丁 Wén Wǔ Dīng
2 帝乙 Dì Yǐ
1 帝辛 Dì Xīn
Notes

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